Wildfires Engulf Aberdare and Mount Kenya Forests as Conservation Teams Battle Multiple Blazes

Wildfires are currently raging in the Aberdare and Mount Kenya forests, challenging the capabilities of the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) and the Kenya Forest Service (KFS).

The immediate focus is on containing the blazes that have erupted amidst ongoing hot weather conditions. Lucy Mwati, Senior Assistant Director of the Mountain Conservation Area for KWS, confirms that teams are actively battling a fire in the Embaringo section of the Aberdare Forest.
The fires represent a recurrence of a troubling pattern, with multiple outbreaks reported in recent weeks due to persistently hot weather.

"We have been experiencing fires at the Aberdares since last week. Every time we contain one, another breaks out in a different area due to the hot weather. Currently, the fire within Embaringo section in the northern part of the forest remains active and efforts to suppress it are ongoing," she says.

While fires in the Gatare, Haggenia, and Wanjohi areas of the Aberdares have been extinguished, the full extent of the damage is pending a comprehensive assessment by KWS. Conservationists are also battling a fire in the Burguret area of Mount Kenya Forest, which has been spreading since igniting on Monday. Susie Weeks, Executive Director of the Mount Kenya Trust Foundation, notes that while progress has been made in extinguishing one section, efforts continue to contain the fire's spread.

The recent outbreaks follow a devastating series of wildfires that consumed hundreds of hectares in Isiolo less than a month ago, highlighting the vulnerability of Kenya's forests. Rhino Ark, a conservation group, is providing critical support to KWS and KFS officers, including helicopter assistance. Despite their efforts, the fire near Embaringo continues to burn.

These wildfires follow a tragic incident one year prior when two KWS officers lost their lives in an accident while responding to a fire in the Aberdare Forest. Additionally, sections of the Maasai Mara game reserve have suffered damage from wildfires, underscoring the broad impact of the fires.